Future Driven By Fate

Some life-changing moments happen by chance. Others require a little planning. High school sweethearts and NC State alumni Kathy (’74) and Herb Council (’78) know that being in the right place at the right time has many advantages. For instance, while still a student at NC State, Kathy met her future employer, Dr. James Goodnight, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of SAS. In 1977, Kathy became SAS Institute’s tenth employee. Today, she is Vice President of Publications at SAS, the world’s largest privately held software developer.

A Little Planning Goes a Long Way

The Councils also know that despite life’s fateful moments, a little planning can go a long way. Founder and owner of Council and Associates, Business and Estate Planning, Herb is an expert at helping individuals, businesses and counties (he spent two terms as a Wake County Commissioner) plan for the future. Collectively, both Councils are helping the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHASS) plan for its own future. Specifically, they established a $1.29 million trust that will create an endowment for merit-based scholarships in CHASS. The Kathy and Herb Council Merit Scholarship Endowment will help attract outstanding students to this important college. “We are so happy to support the College of Humanities and Social Sciences,” says Kathy. “We hope that this scholarship opportunity will encourage outstanding students to combine their liberal arts experience with their interests and talents in mathematics or a technical field.”

A Gift That Keeps Giving

Planned gifts such as the Councils’ represent a far-reaching way to ensure NC State’s future. Donors can set up a unitrust with assets, such as property or stock, that generate income during the donors’ lifetime. Thereafter, the principal goes directly to the beneficiary, in this case to CHASS, creating endowment income that will support students in perpetuity.

The Councils’ own planned gift illustrates their ongoing and now lifelong commitment to and support of CHASS. A former member of the CHASS Board of Advisers, with a term as Board President, Kathy has set up successful faculty and student co-operative exchanges between CHASS and SAS. Further highlighting this dedication, The Kathy and Herb Council Merit Scholarship Endowment will help NC State continue to educate students as well rounded and successful as both Kathy and Herb, showcasing the fact that NC State and CHASS are indeed a part of the Councils’ master plan.